Nadine looked at it critically. ‘It’s a bit fussy.’ She made a face.
‘OK.’ Carol backed off.
Two hours later she was exhausted. They had traipsed up and down Henry Street; Nadine had tried on dozens of clothes, bought two pairs of jeans, three tops, two pairs of shoes, but no wedding outfit.
‘Are you sure I can’t wear jeans?’
‘Aw, come on, Nadine, it’s my wedding,’ Carol snapped.
‘OK,’ she said sulkily. ‘If you want me to get that gear in Miss Selfridge I will, but you’ll have to give me some money for it. I’ve spent most of mine and I want to keep some for tonight.’
‘I’m not the Bank of Ireland, Nadine,’ Carol said crossly, feeling she was being more than a little manipulated.
‘Well, I can’t afford to get what you want me to wear,’ Nadine declared airily.
‘Oh, come on then,’ Carol said grudgingly as they traipsed back down to the Jervis Street Centre.
Even Nadine had to admit the outfit looked very nice on. The chiffon top was dressy and Carol suggested a trip over to M & S to get some silver jewellery to accessorize it.
After much dithering Nadine selected a pair of silver diamanté drop earrings and a matching necklace.
‘Perfect,’ Carol said, trying to hide a yawn. She was whacked. Temple Bar was the last place she wanted to go. They trudged up to the bus stop laden with bags.
‘That was brilliant, Carol. When you get your house I’ll be able to come up for weekends. I might even get a job in Dublin next summer and stay for the whole summer,’ Nadine announced cheerily as they boarded the bus.
Carol couldn’t believe her ears. This was not the plan, under any circumstances.
‘We’ll see,’ she murmured, wishing there was an empty seat, but there wasn’t and they had to stand until they got to Phibsboro.
‘Is that your local? And you’ve got a McDonald’s.’ Nadine stood gazing around after they got off the bus. ‘Can I just go over to the newsagents and get a bar of chocolate? Do you want one?’
‘No, thanks. Leave the bags, I’ll wait here.’ Carol sat on the wall and watched her sister lope over to Miss Mary’s. Nadine’s eating habits were atrocious. She might not be too happy living with Carol after a week or two on a healthy diet, she thought with a little glimmer of amusement. Even if she was out of pocket, the shopping had been a great success. She was relieved that her sister would be wearing a half-presentable outfit and Nadine was thrilled with all her new gear. Now all that had to be done was to take her out for the night and then she could send her home, happy in the knowledge that she had given her sister a memorable trip to Dublin.
Nadine had half the chocolate eaten as she rejoined her sister, and she grabbed her shopping and followed Carol up past Dalymount to the small side street where her flat was.
‘Hey, this is nice,’ Nadine approved, going from room to room. ‘You’re dead lucky having a place of your own and being your own boss.’
‘Look, study hard, get a decent job and you can have the same,’ Carol advised, pouring herself a glass or milk. ‘Want one?’
‘Uuggh!’ Nadine wrinkled her nose. ‘Do you have any Bacardi Breezers or Smirnoff Ices?’
‘Get outta here!’ Carol laughed. ‘Do you want some orange juice?’
‘I suppose so.’ Nadine flung herself on to the sofa. ‘What time is Gary coming?’
‘He should be here any minute. Why don’t you go and have your shower?’
‘OK,’ Nadine agreed. ‘I’m going to wear my new jeans and the pink halter-neck.’
She practically danced into the bathroom. Carol tidied up the shopping bags that had been dumped in the middle of the floor. She’d wear her white jeans and black off-the-shoulder top, she decided, wondering which club would they manage to get into without ID for Nadine. She was under-age, no matter how sophisticated she liked to think she was. They could go to the Turk’s Head and go downstairs to the club after a few drinks, that might do, or maybe Chez Tony – they weren’t too strict about ID there.
Gary hadn’t called since lunchtime, which was a little unusual. He’d told her he’d phone her while they were shopping to see what time they’d be home. She glanced at her watch. It was nine-thirty; she’d give him a buzz to see where he was. She dialled the phone in the flat but got no answer. Great, she thought, he’s on his way. She dialled his mobile and got the out-of-range or switched-off message. That wasn’t like Gary, he always had his phone switched on. A niggle of unease stirred, and she glanced outside to see if there was any sign of the familiar silver Passat.
‘I’m finished – can I have a look through your make-up to see what you’ve got?’ Nadine appeared, wrapped in a bathsheet.
‘Help yourself, it’s in the bedroom,’ she said distractedly.
‘Thanks, Carol, I’m having a great time,’ Nadine assured her.
‘That’s good.’ Carol smiled, glancing out the window again. She might as well have her shower, she decided. They’d be all ready to go when Gary got here.
* * *
‘Another pint?’
‘Ah sure, why not?’ Gary agreed, glancing at his watch. It was after ten – he knew Carol and Nadine would be waiting for him, but he’d got side-tracked by a mate of his and had gone in for a quick pint, which had turned into a bit of a session.
Why couldn’t Carol take her sister out on her own? Couldn’t she have arranged to meet Jessie and had a girly night? He wasn’t a bloody babysitter, he thought irritably as he checked to make sure his phone was off. The last thing he needed was Carol ranting down the phone at him. There was going to be hell to pay if he didn’t turn up tonight, but he’d worry about that tomorrow; there were pints to be drunk and good company to be enjoyed. He hadn’t been on the piss in ages; he deserved a night out, he assured himself.
* * *
‘It doesn’t look like he’s coming, sure it doesn’t,’ Nadine said disappointedly.
‘Something must have cropped up,’ Carol said tightly. It was ten to eleven and she was raging. What a bastard Gary was, letting her down in front of Nadine and letting the poor kid down as well. Just when he’d been doing so well and behaving like a half-decent human being he pulled a stunt like this, she thought in disgust.
‘At least he should ring you and tell you where he is,’ Nadine grumbled. ‘I suppose you don’t want to go out now. I’ll just have to make up a fib to tell the others when I get home.’
‘No, come on, we’ll go ourselves. I might just give Jessie a ring to see if she’d like to come.’ Carol tried to ignore the heart-scalding disappointment at the knowledge that she just couldn’t depend on Gary.
She picked up her mobile and dialled Jessie’s number.
‘Hi, where are you?’ Jessie asked. ‘Is Nadine having a good time?’
‘She’s all shopped out. We’re still in the flat. We’re just heading out, we wondered if you’d like to come?’
‘No, I don’t think so, Carol, I’m wrecked after my match. Dec and Anita ran us ragged.’
‘Oh.’ Carol couldn’t hide her disappointment. It would have been a relief to have a moan to Jessie about what a shit Gary was.
‘What’s wrong?’ Jessie knew her so well, Carol reflected.
‘Umm,’ she stalled, aware that Nadine was in the room.
‘Gary,’ Jessie said succinctly.
‘Yep.’ Carol was equally succinct.
‘Hasn’t arrived?’
‘Got it in one.’
‘Give me twenty minutes,’ Jessica sighed.
‘Thanks, you’re a pal,’ Carol said gratefully. The last thing she wanted to do was to put on a façade and pretend to be enjoying herself. It would be easier to have Jessie along for support.
Half an hour later, Jessie arrived. ‘Hi, Nadine, you look great,’ she greeted the younger girl, privately thinking that Carol’s sister wasn’t looking as much like a skanger as usual.
‘I had a great time, I bought loads of clothes,’ Nadine con
fided. ‘Are we going clubbing?’
‘I’m taking you to Chez Tony to see if we can get into the club downstairs. There’s no point going to any of the others, it’s too hard to get in without ID,’ Carol said firmly.
‘Oh, I wanted to go to Firecracker or Spirit. I heard they were brilliant,’ Nadine declared.
‘Forget it, sister.’ Jessie smiled at her. ‘You won’t get into them without ID. Come on, Chez Tony is cool, and the music’s great,’ she assured her. ‘We’ll get a taxi, OK?’
‘Just have to do a pee.’ Nadine jumped up excitedly and hurried out to the loo.
‘Where’s Gary?’ Jessica whispered.
‘I don’t know. His phone’s turned off, the bastard. I’m sick of him, Jessie. Why does he do things like this to me? Does he not know how much he hurts me? And worse, does he not care? It’s very hard. Why, Jessie, why?’ Carol whispered back.
‘I don’t know, maybe he’s feeling under pressure.’ Jessica shrugged helplessly.
‘We’re all under pressure,’ Carol retorted.
‘I’m ready,’ Nadine announced.
‘Right then, let’s go,’ Jessica said brightly, seeing the tears in Carol’s eyes.
Carol struggled to compose herself. Right at this moment she hated her fiancé.
* * *
Nadine was in her element. She slugged her VRB and lit up a cigarette.
‘What are you doing?’ Carol demanded. ‘For God’s sake, Nadine, cigarettes are the pits. You’ll get lung cancer. Is that what you want?’
‘Ah stop, Carol, don’t be such a granny. You can’t sit there drinking Club Orange. What sort of a wussy are you? We’re having a night out, aren’t we?’ She turned to Jessica.
‘I’m sitting on my fence, Nadine. Never take sides with sisters is my motto.’
‘At least you’re having a proper drink. The first of many, I hope.’
‘Cut it out, Nadine. You shouldn’t be drinking at all,’ Carol growled.
‘Chill out, for crying out loud. I know how to drink,’ Nadine boasted.
‘Listen, if you want to end up like Ma just keep on going. But I’ve no intentions of going down that road, OK?’ Carol snapped.
‘Neither have I,’ Nadine protested hotly. That was a mean thing to say. One or two drinks didn’t mean she was going to end up an alco.
‘Stop fighting, you pair, or I’m going home,’ Jessica warned.
Nadine took a slug of her drink. What a pair of grannies to go out with. She wished Lynn was here to share her night. Temple Bar was hopping. There were restaurants, bars and clubs everywhere you looked. You could feel the energy of the place. This was where she wanted to be every night of the week.
* * *
Gary fumbled with his key in the lock. He was hammered. He must have drunk at least twelve pints if not more, and all he wanted was to crawl into bed. The message light on the answering machine was flashing. It was probably Carol. Was he in for an earbashing, he groaned as he staggered into his bedroom. That was tomorrow’s worry, he thought woosily before collapsing on to the bed and falling into a drunken stupor.
* * *
Nadine sat on the bus back to Arklow. Jessica had given her a lift to Bus Aras, which was very kind of her. It would be great to have your own car like Jessie. What freedom she’d have. She sighed, wriggling around in her seat to get the most comfortable position. She’d had a full day on her own shopping in town and her feet were sore. But it had been fantastic. She loved Dublin. She’d enjoyed her evening with Carol, in fact it had been a great evening until Gary had failed to show up and Carol had got all tight and tense.
It was a mean thing to do. She scowled. She’d gone right off him. She’d heard Carol crying in her bedroom after they’d got home. It was as bad as worrying about her mother, she thought frustratedly. He’d ruined her night and he’d certainly ruined Carol’s. He wasn’t going to get away with it.
* * *
‘Am I in the bad books?’ Gary asked penitently around lunchtime the following day.
‘Fuck off, I don’t want to talk to you,’ Carol told him coldly and hung up. He hadn’t phoned since.
She set out for her jog, looking forward to the relief of tension it always brought. She’d taken Nadine over to McDonald’s at her sister’s request when she’d asked her what she’d like for dinner before her trip home. She’d opted for the low-fat chicken and salad option while Nadine had tucked into a Big Mac meal and fries. Jessica had offered Nadine a lift to the bus and it was a relief to wave her sister off. At least she could be unhappy in peace, she thought sorrowfully as she ran in the direction of The Phoenix Park. She pushed herself hard, not allowing any thoughts of Gary to ruin her run. She liked The Phoenix Park, its great swards of green meadow and grasses a relief after the grimy, gritty noisy city streets.
She was exhausted as she jogged down her street a couple of hours later. A familiar silver Passat was parked outside the flat. So Gary was there, waiting for her. He had a key. She let herself in and wiped the sweat off her face.
‘Hi, Babe. I’m sorry.’ He put on his penitent little-boy look. A bouquet of red roses lay on the table.
Carol looked at him. He was such a prat if he thought some crummy roses were going to make everything all right. But she was an even bigger prat for thinking he’d ever change. He had no intention of changing. He was too self-centred. How long could she go on kidding herself?
‘I’m going for a shower. Don’t bother your arse waiting because I’m in no humour to talk to you. You’re a selfish bastard and you might look down your nose at my family and I know you do, but you have nothing to feel superior about at all, Gary Davis. And if you think a dozen roses are going to make me feel better, you’re even more superficial than even I know you are.’ She turned on her heel and marched into the bathroom.
* * *
Gary could hear the shower running. He turned on the TV and surfed the channels. As tirades went, it certainly wasn’t the worst, he decided. Although the crack about being superficial was well below the belt. At least she hadn’t told him to get out. So things were salvageable enough. He settled back to watch the snooker, pleased that he’d got away with it.
* * *
‘She’s crazy to be marrying him. She’ll never be happy.’ Jessica dipped her spare rib into the barbecue sauce and ate it with relish.
‘Give me one of those won ton things.’ Katie took a slug of beer.
‘And you know something, I told her we’d lost the house and she said, “That’s awful,” and carried on moaning about her bloody relationship with Gary.’
Katie laughed and took a portion of chicken satay out of the Thai special platter. ‘Are you surprised? What did you expect? Anyway, I’m sorry that you didn’t get the house too, but part of me is glad because it means you’re still here for another while. I’m really going to miss you, Jessie.’
‘Let’s not think about it. Here, have a chicken ball,’ Jessica offered. ‘That will sort you.’
‘You know me so well,’ Katie grinned. She’d been on a diet for the past month and it was a great treat to break out.
‘This is so relaxing.’ Jessica stretched lazily. ‘Honestly, I was like a referee between the other pair last night. They are so different. Carol who’s so uptight and wouldn’t have a drink or cigarette if her life depended on it, and the other one slugging VRBs and smoking like a chimney. You should have seen her on the dance floor. I thought Carol was going to freak. She’d be the one to sort Gary out.’
‘Uuhh,’ Katie shook her head. ‘He’s one joker that’s never going to be sorted out by any woman. But you just look at it, Carol wanted to get engaged. She’s engaged. Carol wanted a double wedding. She’s having a double wedding. Don’t feel too sorry for her. He might think he’s the one with the upper hand in that relationship, but so far Carol’s driving the pace. And I can tell you one thing – although Gary doesn’t realize it, Carol Logan’s the one who wears the pants in that relationship and always wil
l,’ Katie said shrewdly, pronging a fat juicy prawn.
‘I still half expect him not to turn up at the church.’ Jessica frowned. ‘Can you just imagine the sort of wedding we’re going to have if that happens?’
‘Don’t even go there.’ Katie proffered a piece of sesame toast.
‘I can’t help it, Katie, it’s just the kind of thing he’d do.’
‘I know,’ her friend agreed. ‘All we can do is wait and see.’
35
‘Have you farted or did you turn up the bubbles in the jacuzzi?’ Katie demanded, and raucous laughter rippled around the group lolling in the foamy water. It was the morning after Jessica and Carol’s hen night. A gang of them had gone to Kilkenny for an overnighter. They’d hit Kytler’s Inn, had a meal and plenty of drink, before heading off to a club. They’d staggered back to the hotel in the early hours and were now relaxing in the jacuzzi after a leisurely swim.
Carol, who’d been persuaded to indulge in a fair few vodkas the previous night and some restorative glasses of wine over lunch, was suffering a massive hangover, being unused to copious amounts of alcohol. She’d gone very quiet, but the rest of them were in high spirits.
‘It’s hard to believe the summer’s over and we’re well into September.’ Denise Hogan stretched luxuriously in the water.
‘Don’t talk.’ Jessica shook her head. ‘It’s scary.’ The past few weeks had been hectic and this was just what she needed.
‘I couldn’t imagine having a double wedding,’ Orla Sinclair declared. ‘I’d be afraid of my life I’d end up having a row with the other couple and I’d never speak to them again. You two are doing so well you’re even having a double hen party.’
Jessica and Carol looked at each other. ‘We’ve had our moments,’ Jessica murmured.
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